Town Hall Project Founded By Former Clinton Staffer

Parent company located at same address as Soros-funded group

A group serving as a central hub of information for congressional town halls was founded by a former Hillary Clinton campaign staffer and its parent company is located at the same address as an organization funded by liberal billionaire George Soros.

Democrats have insisted that recent town hall outbursts against Republican politicians occurred organically, likening them to the Tea Party, while President Donald Trump yesterday tweeted that the "so-called angry crowds in home districts of some Republicans are actually, in numerous occasions, planned out by liberal activists. Sad!"

The Town Hall Project, a group that serves as a one-stop shop of information for town hall protests across the country, is connected to a former Clinton staffer and is also closely affiliated with a number of liberal groups.

The group, which has been referenced by media outlets on numerousoccasions, bills itself as a "volunteer-powered, grassroots effort that empowers constituents across the country to have face-to-face conversations with their elected representatives."

Jimmy Dahman, a former field organizer for the Clinton campaign in Iowa, founded the Town Hall Project. Dahman claimed on CNN that the town hall events are "all organic and happening at the grassroots level."

Dahman's group is closely involved with MoveOn.org, a major progressive activist group that recently launched a website, called ResistanceRecess.com, to encourage activists to attend town hall events.

The Action Network's board of directors includes Mark Fleischman, a former vice president of the Service Employees International Union (SEIU); Brian Young, who worked on campaigns for Howard Dean and John Kerry; Jeffrey Dugas, who worked for John Podesta's Center for American Progress and Elizabeth Warren's 2012 Senate campaign; and Rich Clayton, who worked for the SEIU and the shareholder activism arm of Change to Win, a labor group that describes itself as a "strategic organizing center."

The Action Network is located at the same Washington, D.C., address as United We Dream, the "largest immigrant youth-led organization in the nation." United We Dream has received funding from liberal billionaire George Soros. It began organizing "sanctuary campus" anti-Trump protests shortly after the election.

The Action Network also shares the same address as Change to Win, the labor organizing group.

Change to Win's leadership council is chaired by James P. Hoffa, president of the International Brotherhood of Teamsters. Its secretary is Mary Kay Henry, president of the SEIU.

The Town Hall Project's website refers readers to the Indivisible Guide, a "practical guide for resisting the Trump agenda." The guide includes information on how to "organize local groups to fight for your congressional district" and "four local advocacy tactics that actually work."

A Town Hall Project spokesman told the Washington Free Beacon that the Action Network is a service used to manage their list of volunteers and supporters and that the group would never pay any person to attend a town hall. They added that anyone is free to use their services.

Update February 23, 2017, 10:40 a.m.: This post has been updated to reflect comment from the Town Hall Project.

Joe SchoffstallEmail Joe | Full Bio | RSSJoe Schoffstall is a staff writer for the Washington Free Beacon. Previously, he spent three years with the Media Research Center and was most recently with the Capitol City Project. He can be reached at Schoffstall@freebeacon.com. His Twitter handle is @JoeSchoffstall.